National Park Service

National Park Service officials on Tuesday were looking for the public's help to determine who dumped 77 tires at the Taylors Landing boat ramp in the Chesapeake and Ohio National Historical Park, according to a press release from the park. The dumping of the tires, which occurred Oct. 14, involved tires ranging in size from tractor tires to all-terrain vehicle tires, the release said. Due to the large number of tires dumped, it is believed more than one person was involved, the release said.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - Two people working on details of a planned $250 million National Park Service museum near Harpers Ferry, W.Va., appeared before the Jefferson County Commission Thursday to emphasize that the project is still on track. A development team known as Stonewall Heights, LLC is proposing a museum that would be built on top of a mountain at a site that includes the former Old Standard Quarry off Millville Road. The proposal involves scraping off the top of the mountain, building the facility, and placing fill over the structure, helping it to blend with the natural surroundings.

katec@herald-mail.com America's largest national park, Wrangell-St. Elias, is in Alaska. Named for the volcanic Wrangell mountains and the peaks of the St.Elias range, the 13.2-million-acre park and preserve is larger than Switzerland and as big as six Yellowstones. Wrangell-St. Elias, established as a national park and national preserve in 1980, is home to the greatest concentration of glaciers outside the polar ice caps. Nine of the country's 16 highest peaks stand tall in Wrangell-St.

katec@herald-mail.com There were openings at Fairchild Industries aircraft plant in Hagerstown. Planes were required for the U.S. forces in World War II. Women were needed for homefront jobs while "all the boys were in the service," said the former Catherine Slick, now Catherine Pitts. The young woman joined the factory work force. She learned to glue fabric to wooden wing frames. Later, when wings were made of sheet metal, Slick was trained to rivet the wings. "I loved the riveting," Pitts said.

More than $19 million was spent to rebuild the Big Slackwater section of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park near Williamsport, a massive project along the Potomac River that involved 121 columns bolted into rock to support elevated walkways. Bradley Clawson, chief ranger for the C&O Canal, thought the new concrete spans would be popular among fishermen. But Clawson said he never imagined the problem that has cropped up on the new section. People have been building fires on the walkway, and one of the blazes was so big that it damaged the surface of the walkway, leaving a pothole in the path.

Washington County will retain ownership of two roads in the Four Locks area along the C&O Canal. The National Park Service requested that the county close, abandon and transfer Starliper and Hart roads to the park service. While the county has not maintained the roads for years, the County Commissioners voted not to close them. Commissioners Vice President William J. Wivell said he disagreed with the National Park Service acquiring the land. He said he thought the park service would not maintain the roads.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A planned museum in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., that would have been home to artifacts from across the country is off the drawing board - at least temporarily - according to a local National Park Service official and the head of the agency. There were concerns about the size of the project and lack of National Park Service funds to run it. Bradley Gray, a spokesman for a group of developers working to purchase the former Old Standard Quarry property where the museum would have been built, emphasized Wednesday that the museum idea is out of consideration only for this year.

The National Park Service is seeking information regarding vandalism earlier this summer at the McMahons Mill area of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park at the end of Avis Mill Road. Sometime between Sunday June 8, and Tuesday, June 10, graffiti was spraypainted on the parking area and the park's natural and cultural resources along the Potomac River. Park Rangers have increased patrol in this area to prevent further vandalism. Anyone with information regarding this crime is asked to call the National Park Service toll-free at 1-866-677-6677 or contact U.S. Park Ranger Dan Johnston at 301-714-2235.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - A 49-year-old Shenandoah Junction, W.Va., resident was named in an indictment returned May 20 by a federal grand jury. U.S. Attorney Sharon L. Potter announced that Robert Danno turned himself in to law enforcement authorities on May 29. The indictment alleges that Danno knowingly received, concealed, and retained stolen property in excess of $9,000 belonging to the National Park Service on Aug. 31, 2007. If convicted, Danno faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

A study by the National Park Service and Michigan State University has shown that the country's national parks are a valuable asset during the current recession, drawing thousands of visitors and propping up local economies. Visitors to National Park Service sites last year helped support more than 200,000 jobs and spent $11.8 billion in gift shops and nearby businesses such as hotels, restaurants and gas stations, according to the study. Visitors staying outside of the parks in motels, hotels, cabins and bed-and-breakfasts accounted for 55 percent of the total spending.

Robert Lee "Snapper" Ainsworth, 79, of Harpers Ferry, W.Va., passed away Friday, Sept. 6, 2013, at Jefferson Medical Center in Ranson, W.Va. Born Aug. 28, 1934, in Harpers Ferry, he was the son of the late James Albert Ainsworth and Elsie Lee Myers Ainsworth. He was of the Lutheran faith. He retired from the National Park Service in Harpers Ferry as an equipment operator with 32 years of service. He was a member of American Legion Post 71 and Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 948, both of Charles Town, W.Va., and a lifetime member of Friendship Fire Co. in Harpers Ferry.

Retired teachers will be recruited to expand a Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park program for Washington County Public Schools students, the National Park Service announced on Thursday. In 2011, park officials partnered with the school system to create a series of fourth-grade programs for the classroom and for field trips to the canal's Cushwa Basin in Williamsport, according to a C&O Canal National Historical Park news release. When students visit the canal in Williamsport, they participate in three programs allowing them to explore a historical lockhouse, operate a canal lift lock, as well as activities that focus on science, math, technology, history and environmental education, the release said.

For 10 years, Ray Lizarraga displayed in his home a Confederate-style kepi that he obtained when he first started participating in Civil War re-enactments. He placed it on the head of an 11-year-old stranger Wednesday during a commemorative march on the 150th anniversary of Pickett's Charge. “I just wanted to have it here as a peace offering,” Lizarraga said of the hat. Eric Jackson of North Carolina grinned as he donned the kepi. He and his 13-year-old brother, Drew Jackson, walked a mile with thousands of other people on the same ground crossed by Confederate soldiers on the Battle of Gettysburg's last day. The crowd made its way up Cemetery Ridge to the so-called “high-water mark” reached by the Confederacy.

This is the weekend for Hancock's 11th annual Barge Bash. The unique and popular local festival gets under way Saturday morning at 10 in the town's rewatered portion of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. Vessels should be in place for public viewing by that hour. Entries can come from churches, civic organizations or businesses, and barges must be capable of safely carrying at least one person. Motorizing is not permitted; all barges are to be towed by ropes. Entry forms, complete with rules, are available at Town Hall, 126 W. High St. Those attending can enjoy food from local organizations, musical entertainment and historical displays. The parade of barges begins at 1 p.m., with prizes awarded at 2 p.m. The event is jointly sponsored by the town of Hancock, Hancock Arts Council and National Park Service.

More than $19 million was spent to rebuild the Big Slackwater section of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park near Williamsport, a massive project along the Potomac River that involved 121 columns bolted into rock to support elevated walkways. Bradley Clawson, chief ranger for the C&O Canal, thought the new concrete spans would be popular among fishermen. But Clawson said he never imagined the problem that has cropped up on the new section. People have been building fires on the walkway, and one of the blazes was so big that it damaged the surface of the walkway, leaving a pothole in the path.

Williamsport Elementary School fourth-graders helped National Park Service officials open two new educational trails Friday morning at the C&O Canal National Historical Park in Williamsport. Park Superintendent Kevin Brandt was among a handful of officials to welcome the fourth-graders, who were tagged at the ceremony as the future stewards of the National Park Service. “You guys are our future, and we're glad that you're here,” Brandt said. The two new trails are part of the National Park Service's TRACK Trails program, which promotes self-guided tours in an effort to encourage children and their families to explore the outdoors.

Gov. Martin O'Malley's capital budget bill that cleared the Senate on Wednesday sets aside $100,000 for renovations and repairs to Lock 44, Lockhouse 44 and the Western Maryland Railroad Lift Bridge in Williamsport as part of improvements to Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park. A bond bill request by state Sen. George C. Edwards, R-Garrett/Allegany/Washington, asked for $175,000 for the renovations, but the request was only partially funded. The National Park Service is expected to match the amount.

Officials at Antietam National Battlefield probably will cut back on park ranger-led tours, programs for school students, regular maintenance of monuments and historical buildings and mowing due to the federal budget cuts known as sequestration, the superintendent of the park said. Also, park officials probably will not extend the hours of operation for the park's visitor center during the summer this year, said Susan Trail. The visitor's center closing time is usually extended from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. during the summer months, Trail said.

The latest figures for visitation show that the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park is Maryland's largest and most visited national park. Figures released by the National Park Service recently show that the park ranks 11th in number of visitors out of 398 national parks. The 2012 visitation numbers showed an increase over the previous year (the park was ranked 17th in visitation in 2011). Visitation parkwide, and in Washington County, has greatly increased. “To have such a positive increase in the number of visitors shows that park usage is way up, in recreational tourism and heritage visitation,” said Tom Riford, president and chief executive officer of the Hagerstown-Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Labor Day Breakfast in the Park, a 65-year-old Martinsburg tradition, continued Monday with more than 500 diners sitting down to breakfast under the park's main pavilion. “It's our single War Memorial Park fundraiser of the year,” said Bonn “Buzz” Poland, who for the umpteenth time organized the effort to get tickets out to the public. This year's breakfast, featuring steak or ham, cost $30. Proceeds will be used to replace the McKee Pavilion with a larger structure and pay for renovations to the bathhouse.